Using a Mad Catz Tournament Edition fight stick on each console, and rigging both setups with an HDMI cable to a monitor set at 720p resolution, MrDeap taped and produced this side-by-side video comparison of both consoles’ reaction time to his controller input (Xbox 360 on the left and Playstation 3 on the right). While more difficult to catch in the real-time video, when watching the slowed down version it becomes fairly easy to see the difference in lag time. And the results were:

Sorry, PlayStation fanboys, your console came in two frames SLOWER than the Xbox 360. That may not seem like a lot to casual gamers, but for competitive gaming even a one-frame differential can be (and often is at high-level play) the difference between victory and defeat. The tape doesn’t lie – even if you do.

Real-Time Version:

Slowed Down Version:

For what it’s worth, beyond bragging rights this difference in offline lag may never truly matter until gamers find a way to host proper Xbox vs Playstation LAN tournaments. And, though we were not able to verify the authenticity of the video itself or the (lack of) strict testing requirements under which it was made, it’s safe to say that no matter which console came out the victor someone would have been screaming foul play and bloody murder – you know who you are.